There seems to be no derailing some people's entrepreneurial spirit.
Being one of the most popular mass transportation systems in the Greater Jakarta Area, the KRL Commuterline is often so cramped that priority seating is just not everybody's priority. For this reason, the service has been giving out pregnancy pins for expecting mothers to signify that they are entitled to a seat on board the train.
Pregnant passengers can claim the pin for free from KRL Commuterline, and still we are seeing replicas go on sale on online marketplaces.
In the screenshot above are three recent replica pregnancy pin listings on Shopee. The pins come in two designs and dimensions, costing from IDR7,500 (US$0.50) to IDR10,500 (US$0.70) each. Credit to the sellers, though, who wrote disclaimers in the products' descriptions saying that the pins are not official KRL Commuterline products.
After the emergence of these replicas, KRL Commuterline tweeted links yesterday to where pregnant passengers can register to claim their free official pregnancy pins.
One thing to note is that a multi-trip card (KMT) is required to register for a free pregnancy pin.
So there may be value yet in replica pins – specifically for non-KMT holders – as we doubt nobody would refuse to give up their seat to a pregnant woman just because she doesn't have the official KRL Commuterline pin.